Pandas love the mountains and snow. Mount Hood, in the picture, is near my home in Oregon.

Friday, September 13, 2013

Paleo Diet without the meat

Huff Post article: 6 Health Lessons From the Paleo Diet is a perfect description of the diet I have been on since May - I rated the article a ten out of ten - you can find it with the link above.

So my "Paleo" diet is one with little meat - I have two ounces of turkey twice a day in snacks, and that is all (except for the days I have three snacks). That is no sacrifice, since I don't especially crave meat in my diet. I have plenty of protein - more than is needed - 80 grams/day. I get one third my minimum daily requirement of protein in just one smoothie. It is mainly from non-fat Greek yogurt.

The rest of the description of what makes a Paleo diet so great also perfectly describes how I have lost fifteen pounds without having cravings. Usually I don't feel hungry.

So what are the 6 health lessons?
1. avoid processed food - easy. Everything is fresh, raw, and spends only a minute in my blender.
2. pair diet with exercise - hard. I used to love to walk, run, swim, etc. After a couple of car accidents it is hard to exercise enough, but I can still walk, which according to my surgeon is a literal miracle. I would agree.
3. a good salt balance - easy. I don't salt my smoothies. I get lots of potassium with a banana a day.
4. choose good fats - easy. Part of an avocado goes into the spinach smoothie (yes it does taste good). Almond meal in a breakfast smoothie and flax seeds or chia seeds in the berry smoothie. Easy.
5. Cook for yourself - easy. Smoothies take about ten minutes to make.
6. Don't count calories - easy. Well, that is because my recipes already counted the calories, in the book by Harley Pasternak, MSc. Going by how often I use it, "The Body Reset Diet" is my favorite book.

Side benefits from this well balanced diet include smoother, more youthful looking skin. With an average of 43 grams of fiber a day, regularity is no problem anymore.

I use more Greek yogurt than in Harley's recipes, one-half to three-quarter cups extra in lunch and dinner smoothies, and add extra almond meal, because this is how I eat every day, not just the five initial days of Harley's plan. His plan allows 18% fat per day for the first five days, but I have increased that to 20% for the long term, and increased the calories from 871 to 1400 with the increased yogurt and more fruit, and extra snacks.